a journey called...

My Lecture at DumDum Motijeel College

2012-02-09T02:11:00.001+05:30

The resonance of poetry is to fade off

Poetry is about spontaneity, it is about how you perceive and then scribble your thoughts on a piece of paper. It is easy to hide your true intentions by keeping others guessing what lies beneath the meandering stanzas- it is easier still to find the rhythm gurgling inside- and opening up a small vent for it to flow out. Therefore poetry lies in each one of us and is utterly not something to be cautious about or something to be afraid of. The man who says he does not appreciate poetry would perhaps be the same person to hum a tune to him at the slightest pretext.

The new age poets or so called just timely verse scribblers are not sitting aloof. Some of them are yet to consider their passion as a flamboyant part of the book industry. They simply write because it is in free verse their mind speaks to them.

For Payal Pasha, a 40 yr literature enthusiast and a homemaker, in spite of being attached to public sector for 15 years, is capable of penning down the hard truth much like the anti female foeticide activists:-

The Girl Child

A slight sound, an echo...

and as it reached its crescendo

my eyes fluttered open.

The walls seemed familiar,

I had been here before,

soft, warm, secure.

Am I really floating?

Two loving hands

caress me, almost touching

longing to hold me closer.

That voice again....

whispering, now humming

a lullaby...

I reach out

but encounter only darkness.

Oh ! to be enveloped in those arms...

But what's that noise?!

I feel pushed, jerked, thrown aside !

A scream, followed by another

and then silence...

I wake up to the sounds of dissonance

and cadence in each voice,

some pragmatic, some bereft of emotion,

only one in unremitting misery.

Suddenly the walls feel cold and stiff,

almost squeezing tight,

I can hardly breathe.

Help ! I am suffocating !

Something sinister is approaching,

a blade? a dagger? a hatchet?

And now I'm hurting !

Stop them, mommy !!

They are killing me !

I have yet to see you !

Yet to feel your arms around me !

Yet to suckle life from your bosom !

I feel myself being shredded

roughly, cruelly

like some unwanted garbage

and I am no more

thrown into oblivion

forever lost, never to be loved again.

My only crime ?

I was conceived a girl child......

Priyanka Dey calls herself a Bengali living in Delhi. Born in Kolkata, she finds her roots in Bengali culture. She has done her schooling from Mater Dei, New Delhi. Presently, she is pursuing her masters in History from Hindu College,Univ. Of Delhi. Her tryst with poetry came with her intellectual bent towards Tagore and Jibananda Das. She owns a blog of what she calls 'scribblings'. She wants to publish her own book of poetry and is also working on a novel. A girl still trying to gauge the deeper meaning of existence has gathered the strength to write off verses that remind us of stalwarts from the past:-

A moon-lit sky
Brewed lullabies
Chill runs down my spine,
As I dream of You..
Tonight.
Sun,a ruby bulbous rose
That,like a myriad
Went criss cross on
The contours of my denuded
mind.
Take me into your embrace
As the halo of a dawn appears
I sit and unfold the creases
Our love made,
Entangled by the dusk.

Child:

Child..
Laughter
Invading into
Boundaries of
Silence.
Crossing
Bridges of
Confrontation,
Naked feet
Wet from
Streams of
Confronted mistakes
Most forgiven,
Some etched
Forever.
Let me be the child.
That who smirks,
Smiles n cries,
Who lives and tries,
Let me..?

D Samarender Reddy did his undergraduation in medicine (MBBS) from Gandhi Medical College, Hyderabad, and MA (Economics) from the Johns Hopkins University, USA. He has earlier worked as a copywriter and programmer and is currently working as an editor with a medical publisher in Hyderabad. His book, “Thoughts” - is rather a reflective collage than a book. I should not say, it is containing a preacher’s discourse- but the verses are often bordering on morality and evoking spiritual questions- that will make the reader ponder more than usual. It is a collage of painted feelings, comprising of small realizations and observable notions like:
“Our knowledge is built,

On the scaffold of doubt;”

The above lines are from the poem Doubt- a small piece but comprising of greater philosophy.

Politics come in foray in the pages of Mousumi Roy’s -Dancing Leaves Create Music Dust is Blowing...

With Libya beckoning a new dawn-her “Future Image” gathers small snippets of how a race had issued as an undercurrent to a sombre society- as if within its gurgling belly you could hear the war cry reverberating-the words cataclysmic shudder- is most threatening creation so far. Hold on, you don’t really need to look far trying to fit your social milieu into the womb of a mother- just look deep- Roy would help you see

“In all caves of desires/

And possession...”

-that’s-“Life’s Unjust” according to her.

If the seniors by age are talking about philosophy and politics—the tender minds question the most powerful force ruling all forms of live- “Love”. From romantic inclination to unconditioned affection- their taunt pens grow serious while digging into the deepest realms of growing quest for ultimate answers to emotions less expressed and more felt within.

Today’s Random poetry is penned down by people like Yassen Anwer makes it clear enough- ‘I was not a poet/ and never expected to be/My pain forced me to write/and text became poetry.”

If we are to consider Yaseen’s “Victims” – we can feel the words pinching at our skeleton, itself-

“When victims seek sympathy

Crying,

Bleeding,

Struggling…

The echo not only travels length and breadth

Drilling,

Drifting

Struggling…

It reaches to the core and approaches the zenith.”

Heena Ansari- for whom a fading bond is still alive in her words-

“but believe me/swear, always/I feel you around me, like air.”

And Swati Sevlani- who communicates through nascent expressions getting the chance to know about the existence of the day.

To quote “I surpassed”-

“She was lost, she was puzzled…

The mingles and jingles gone somewhere,

She opened the door, embraced the nature,

All she had is to whisper.”

Rinzu Rajan started writing poetry as a means of revealing her ebbing thoughts. Her work- “an ode to my city- Delhi” has revoked quiet admiration from my end. If we are talking about “ebbing”- she does have a few words to spare for it as well. Her poem “Ebb and Flow” tells me that her feather has survived the plight attached to growing up-

“Gravity is the tide

On which we levitate

Buoyed to the ebb and flow,

Of exaltation and tribulation.”

Nikhil Sharma, on the other hand, seemed to have grasped the potency hidden beneath the composure of stillness. Thus he writes in the poem “Walls”-

“of exasperation in dogma,

Or imposed vicariousness,

What’s left of this vagrant soul,

Day of final calling, and eternal sleep,

A eulogy, and some tears,

But me,

Alone…”.

To this band of daring writers in verse I would just say-

“I am thirsty

I am hungry

To read more and more.”

Perhaps, it is Ejaz Ahmed and Apurv Agarwal- who are capable to getting closer to the pedestals of forgotten days with their maiden poetry collections “A night’s sail” and “Straight to your heart”- giving a world a new source of reverberating love expressions. It is indeed a brave attempt at least to quit pretending to be great, and keeping on the struggle on getting to better of inner potentials.

Like small frisky streams the poetry of the youth flows down the mountainous journey of literary expression, several of them will be threatened of premature death and might even succumb to the blows of time, several might join together to form rivers and live through only to find a way to join the currents rushing beneath our feet. But only the bravest of creators will see the ocean-live through the seasons and be remembered beyond their own times.

Book Review: Woundikins

2012-02-08T14:07:00.001+05:30

Author: Tanuja Mullick

Format: Paperback

Language: English

Pages: 102

Price: Rs. 200

Publishers: Cyberwit.net

ISBN Number: 978-8182532663

About the book:

Before I start off with the review I would like to explain the meaning of “Woundikins” refers to an expression of pain or a mild profanity, from the early 19^th century.

The “Woundikins” I have in my hands right now is rather a collection of poems written by Tanuja Mallick. The best part about reading a book of poems – you can flip through- start reading from any page you feel like, without having Guilty poking at your heart. Yes, this can be done- unless the poems are chained up together- like a novel in verse.

So true and wise are the words- yet we hear prose and poetry quarrelling behind our innocent backs. Herein I am referring to the poem:

“

Sad a writer to the poet,

“To make the love story short,

It takes a lot.”

“

If the pen is tucked inside the deft fingers of a female writer- you can expect her to reveal all that lies buried behind the veil of the mute rebel. The following lines from the poem- “for better or verse” will catch you unaware- make you stop at your briskly thriving monotony and make you bewildered. The words are heavy- though wrapped into the usual package of casual thoughts:

“Patrimony or matrimony,

Dowry or alimony,

If the colour pales

Or the institution fails,

Try again and again:

Partnerships regain.”

I could have stopped here but for the twist at the end- which left its long lasting impression on me-

“A deluge of loneliness

Washes away

Sounds and experience.

Sunset to sunrise,

Blessing or curse,

Some move from bed to verse.”

It is interestingly difficult to deal with the two major constants- time and space. They don’t usually give in much to your bound imagination- yet all attempts to capture them in a single frame need applauding. Mallick draws a unique parallel in her poem “Time and Space”-

“We stood by

What was once a shoreline

Tracing patterns

From beyond

That converged into a

Kaliedoscope, more complex.”

The magic of verse or emotive words gets realised the moment the reader is capable of taking up the unfinished story penned down so far and sitting down to imagine new episodes from thereafter. The poem “testimony” is one such creation that would apparently make you accept the finality- but for your imagination running wild- hoping to add a few more half moulded lines- broken here and there-

“The power of language,

In all forms and arts,

Is greater than the sum of its parts.”

It is apt to include here in- “Woundikins” comes with an interesting cover- which to would leave you baffled with meandering thoughts- much before- you have started with your paying attention to your “flipping through” habit.

About the Author:

Tanuja Mullick is from the Deep South. She is married to a Bengali who is a Novelist in English and a Civil Servant in the Indian Administrative Service. They have a daughter. Tanuja hopes that some day in the distant future, their grandchild/grandchildren will point out to books in the shelves and proudly announce, “These were written by grandpa and those by grandma.” Hence, she is working on another book project.

Further Information:

Music Inspired: melanchonic vibes

2012-02-08T12:08:00.000+05:30

Time to let music do the task of inspiring muse. Video courtesy: AllegroTheSymphony

Like autumn leaves

Holding on to your

Wild locks-

Pain savours the taste

Of trickling time

Down the neck of that hour glass.

Love was a guise, a trick

Forbidding, foreboding-

Yet so tempting were its poppy seeds.

Now with trace broken,

The hour glass smashed

Against that once kindling heart-

All you are left with-

Is a single piece of glass

Now gloriously turning red

Buried deep into your soul.

Book Review: The Perfect World

2012-02-07T21:54:00.002+05:30

Author: Priya Kumar

Format: Paperback

Language: English

Pages: 319

Price: Rs.275/-

Publishers: Embassy Books

ISBN Number: 9789380227931 / 978-9380227931

About The Book:

So, exactly, when is the right time to think about-“Ah! This life pains, wish I had known the way to Utopia?” Some won’t have given a second thought- if their miserable life would lead them to the enchanting island of Tennyson’s “Lotus Eaters”. But the barter to this rather chance of walking down the illusive path way is never easy- you got to leave behind your sense of rationality.

Denied of the perfect life, Niki Sanders is just like a soul lost among us. Her idea of “The perfect World” kept on running in circles- in a wooded cluster of winding paths and got trapped in the cage of hopelessness. In times of despair often a lost soul catches your attention- and in Niki’s case- it is the believably dead but magically and mysteriously alive Thelda. What enthralls the reader more, is the opportunity to come in contact with life existing beyond the realms of our universe. Priya Kumar- propagates the mirror image of a perfect world- though real- but quite untrue if we are to define its existence through our rationality fed upon monotony. From a doomed existence to a rare chance to share wisdom of superior beings like Bren and Acordorf- “The perfect world” is about getting to know about one’s potential, learning to combat with inner dilemma and deriving profound understanding about oneself. It is the sense of clarity that Niki seemed to lack in the initial pages of the book- but with events revealing newer experiences- she gains the rare spark of confidence- that would alter her pre-existing troubled personality.

Gone are the days of old grandfathering fables, the new age demands the inspiration quotes to be dished out in an out of the box manner. The apathy towards old school lies in the severely repetitive words- as our senses get tuned to more new inventions, discoveries, dreams and imaginative workshops- we require to adapt to utterly different tastes- to claim the global feat. Several self help book- concealed under the veil of a superficial story- are running for the rat race in the book world. “The Perfect World” is one such strong competitor- which tackles a fantastic tale- involves alter universes and never stops at preaching- but in between the lines.

About The Author:

A motivational speaker and a bestselling, award winning author, Priya Kumar is the CEO of Priya Kumar's Training Systems. Priya has worked with the best names in the corporate world. Her interactive and at times unconventional methods of training continue to deliver much sought after tangible results. Apart from being a columnist for leading newspapers, Priya does several radio and television shows on Motivation and Peak Performance. Author of bestselling books, "I Am Another You" and "License to Live", Priya's powerful storytelling has touched the lives of people across the world.

Further information:

Book review: Midnight's Children

2012-01-31T20:54:00.002+05:30

Book: Midnight's Children
Author: Salman Rushdie
ISBN: 0099578514
ISBN-13: 9780099578512,978-0099578512
Binding: Paperback
Publishing Date: 1995
Publisher: Vintage
Edition: 1stEdition
Number of Pages: 464
Language: English

(Since there was so much of hue and cry about this author, I felt of breaking some rules and included a book I liked reading and I wrote about long time back. Thus, this is more of musing less of scrutiny- that I usually employ in Book reviews.)

It is difficult to deny the burden on the back, it’s prickly and heavy and how much we try to shrug it off, it sticks on harder….it’s the historical burden of the past. The language I am writing in right now, is essentially not mine, but borrowed from another land, my ways are not those of my people but an amalgamation of what I have and what I have borrowed. Thus it was never very difficult to understand this lingering sense of borrowed past, this impossible burden of past as I flipped through the first few pages of Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children.

Salman Rushdie, has a made a name for himself as a controversial novel writer. All his novels are characterized by an epic sweep of narration, a plethora of allusions to real events, real people, mythological and literary characters, and hilarious, often ribald humour reminiscent of Tristram Shady.

Rushdie has written eleven fictions- Grimus(1975), Midnight’s Children(1981), Shame(1983), The Satanic Verses (1988), Haroun and the Sea of Stories (1990), The Wizard of Oz (1992), East, West (1994), The Moor's Last Sigh (1995), The Ground Beneath Her Feet (1999), Fury (2001),Step Across This Line: Collected Nonfiction 1992 - 2002 (2002),Shalimar the Clown (2005) and The Enchantress of Florence (2008). And most of them speaks of good overcoming the evil force, or at least survives. Perhaps for this one might be forced to agree that Rushdie is a romantic who uses the medium of satire, much like his Indian counterparts and in his own way presents a story where past and present overlap to give a blurred future.

Midnight Children expresses an historical connection through the literary journey. This journey is again not singular; it is the journey of self and a nation. Born at the dawn of Indian independence and destined, upon his death, to break into as many pieces as there are citizens of India, Saleem Sinai manages to represent the entirety of India within his individual self. His is the writer-protagonist, a son of an Englishman who has seduced the wife of a Hindu street singer. He is educated at the Cathedral and John Connon’s Boy’s School in Bombay. He is the ‘Snotnose, Stainface, Baldy, Sniffer, Buddha and Piece-of-the-Moon’, who rise and fall is linked miraculously to the faith of a new born country.

The Mexican critic Luis Leal has said, "Without thinking of the concept of magical realism, each writer gives expression to a reality he observes in the people. To me, magical realism is an attitude on the part of the characters in the novel toward the world," or toward nature. He adds, "If you can explain it, then it's not magical realism."

Writers like García Márquez, who use magical realism, don't create new worlds, but suggest the magical in our world. And Marquez’s A Hundred years of Solitude had a great influence on Rushdie’s take on Midnight Children, especially in the context of the theme.

The theme of magic reality, the combination of the two heavy words makes its presence felt almost in every page of the novel, a sense of overlapping entities that further tries to invade the identity of the reader itself. Saleem Sanai talks of 365 voices jostling and shoving each other inside him. And as the reader travels along the course of the story, he finds himself becoming a part of those persistently chattering voice. This is magical, yet an undistinguished reality. For, even if a reader is born much after the main events supporting the novel, has occurred, its sweeping history has become his own history; an important identity that cannot be considered a ganglion and amputated right away. The above observation lies true when we are to recall the gory Jalianwala barg massacre, the pains of the Emergency period, the terrorist attacks and the Bangladesh war. At one point, in Midnight’s Children, Saleem, makes use of the metaphor of a cinema to explain his peculiar business of perception. The same can be used to understand the profound use of magic realism.

‘Suppose yourself in a large cinema, sitting at the first in the back row, and gradually moving up,… until your nose is almost pressed against the screen. Gradually the stars’ faces dissolve in the dancing grain; tiny details assume grotesque proportions; … it becomes clear that the illusion itself is reality.’

The movement towards the cinema screen is the metaphor for the narrative’s movement through time towards the present.

Thus Salaam Sinai is handcuffed to history. Rushdie has carefully drawn numerous parallels between the protagonist and his country, right from his face which resembles “the whole map of India” to his fortune which is “indissolubly chained to those of my country. Soothsayers had prophesied me, newspapers celebrated my arrival, politicos ratified my authenticity. I was left entirely without a say in the matter.”

This is exactly the problem of modern man who is driven by the whirling chaos around him. Salaam is just one such victim who stands in the middle of disturbance and turmoil and like a speechless witness chronologically tries to reproduce history. But his memory fails to maintain the accurate dateline. And factual errors are prominent symptoms. He frets over the accuracy of his story and worries about future errors he might make. Yet again continues in his own rhythm adding metaphors and images that increase the authenticity of the notion, India is a land of illusion, where magic and reality reside side by side, and quite often intermingle to give a renewed identity to the mundane existence.

Book Review: The Legend of Amrapali

2012-01-31T20:24:00.000+05:30

Author: Anurag Anand

Format:Paperback

Language: English

Pages: 214

Price: 200

Publishers: Srishti Publishers

ISBN Number: 9380349473

About the Book:

“So what are you reading now?” a voice enquired from behind. I mumbled for the ‘n’th time- and got showered with more. Now three different voices shooting questions at me. “What Amrapali- you mean the dancer?”- “No, she was the courtesan, right?” “What Amrapali- you are reading about Vyjayanthimala Bali , are you?” read it somewhere that people had forgotten about Amrapali- now my relatives prove it, that we have n’t. With a kid peeping over the cover- and spelling the Title out letter by letter, with a male voice in the room rolling the words in his tongue, “The girl who are born in mango grove” and with my memories dragging me back to my childhood days, with the pages of Amar Chitra Katha’s edition of “Buddha” Amrapali bowing in front of Sakya Muni and offering him food- the protagonist became a familiar figure, much before I had started reading.

I will not delve into history, you got the famous Mr. Google and Mr. Wikipedia to help you out and of course Aurag Anand’s “The Legend of Amrapali” is an assured pleasant reading. The book speaks of power and examines the growth of a simple yet most exquisitely beautiful girl from innocent belle to a nagarvadhu of Vaishali, who could exercise more power than even the lecherous king.

If you have watched movies like “Umrao jaan” (no matter-whichever version you pick) or “Destiny Of Her Own” (a movie about Veronica Franco ) you would understand how power yields in the hands of the mute victim when the struggle to survive turns too tough to endure- but for the groans through the pursed lips and the supposed benign smile. In the deft hands of Anurag Anand- Amrapali displays the art of dancing for the eyes and tempting the mindless men folk to murder one another, to squander their money and ignore their responsibilities, just for a glimpse of her. With her beloved arrowed down, just hours before her marriage, she forgoes her tears- and makes the most of the situations she is pushed into. What she fails to speak about, her dancing steps convey. What impressed me was the art of skating away from the obvious, employed by the writer. A story as such could have spoken about a life wasted in pleasures, page by page- a desperate writer could have done that and to get his books sold in millions. But, the legendary Amrapali was honoured to be considered nothing beyond a woman in plight- planning her life with a high head and avenging her enemies- with no second glance caste upon the bygone. Only an experienced pen could have done that- keep it scribbling across your desk, Mr. Writer.

About the Author:

Anurag Anand is a Mumbai based banking professional cum author. He started his tryst with writing at the early age of 24 when he penned his first self-help book – Pillars of Success, which was followed by another title in the same genre (Corporate Mantras).

His first fiction title was, Tic Toc – A tale of love, hate and terror, which was released in 2008, close on the heels of the 27/11 carnage in Mumbai. The Quest for Nothing and Reality Bites, Anurag’s next two fiction titles, made it to the National Bestseller list within months of their release and The Quest for Nothing was also nominated for the Vodafone Crossword Book Awards, 2011. The Legend of Amrapali is his sixth title overall and fourth work of fiction.

Further Information:

www.anuraganand.in

Book Review: The Ancient Book

2012-01-30T21:21:00.003+05:30

Author: Parikshit Rane

Format:Paperback

Language: English

Pages: 81

Price: Rs. 95

Publishers: Leadstart Publishing Pvt. Ltd.

ISBN Number: 978-93-81115-03-9

About the Book:

Did you ever think of old fairy tales actually growing old and somewhat a stale- the same old story of a Red Riding Hood, and the Hare losing out to a Tortoise- new age mothers finding it difficult to conceive better bedtime stories- more baffled are they at the story weaving capacities of their conceived baby geniuses! You can’t blame them- they see more and type more than we do- or should that be called type “faster’.

I was thinking all this, with two frisky kids hanging all over me-trying to draw their “Aunt’s attention” from her tome books. What the Tome failed to do- the slim bind achieved. Parikshit Rane’s “The Ancient Book” saved the day. You really won’t mind tender fingers jabbing at your knees asking you to carry on- pouring you with questions and even ignoring the important things in their toddler lives- the Cartoon channels.

It is your happy meal that you read and express with same gusto- “Awe- now what? Sara, what will she do?” She is the magician daughter of King Zius and Queen Isabella of the magical world of Angdom. Like all fairy tales, we got our villains too. You can think of a colony of witches, vampires, trolls and what not- if your imagination is falling short- you can watch the numerous fantasy movies anytime for quick gruesome references. But the ring master of all these malicious creatures is most threatening – the King Satan and Queen Gilda combo. And they rule with great fury over these creatures from their lair called Lyncastia.

When I had started reading out the book aloud to the most questioning two sets of eyes I have met till date- I had two things in mind- “Oh! This book has got mythical characters- now how would I explain their significance to the kids?” – “hope it’s not too frightening- tough it is already to make these two sit, tougher it would get if they start weeping!” “The Ancient Book” is trouble proof- it is fast, it is aptly drenched with enchanting narrative- and best- it will not extend unnecessarily. The writer brings in it virtues that could be taught as the story flows. And the best- we got something like a book to tell us the secrets of our world and about aliens fighting away evil along with The Righteous King Zius.

Thus when I finally ended up shutting the book- Kid One said to Kid Two- “I know about vampires and aliens- they are ugly, I know about Bunny the Rabbit, and Satan is like He-man’s Skeletor.” Kid Two smiled back confidently, “The Ancient Book is something like Ten commanders (she meant Ten Commandments)!”- And left both Kid One and me gaping at her. Do you still doubt about modern kids and their ragging IQ! Thanks to Parikshit Rane’s “The Ancient Book”- my lesson was well learnt!

About the Author:

Born in Mumbai, Parikshit Rane is a poet and fantasy fiction author. He always dreamt of being published and is living his dreams writing poems and books. The journey of being published began with 2 of his poems getting published in “An Anthology for Passion for Poetry (2008-09).” Parikshit’s second novella called “Love beyond boundaries” will release soon and you can expect many more fantasy fiction books from him in the future.

Further Information:

Book Review:Dissension

2012-01-29T22:42:00.001+05:30

Author: Gopa Nayak

Format: Paperback

Language: English

Pages: 107

Price: Rs. 200

Publishers: Cyberwit.net

ISBN Number: 978-81-8253-220-5

About the Book:

As I write this review, I am painfully trying to forget the horrid misuse of freedom to create new musical composition for masterpieces written down by Rabindranath Tagore. The song that just got botched by the electric guitar, the drum set was- “Jodi tor data sune keu na ashe”. The reason I wrote this was perhaps I felt as if a dead old man was assuring me , that no matter how hard they try- the existing creation are too powerful to be marred by the mindless. And Gopa Nayak’s lines worked as a catalyst.

“I will burn

I will not be tainted

I will prove

I will not be chained.”

Yes, the context of the main poem “Sita Stepped into Fire” is though more serious echoing epical occurrence, bordering quintessential feminist questions. The beginning of the poem would be something every woman at some part of her life must have said to herself –

“I know what she felt

When she did that but

Sita in me argues today.”

Gopa Nayak in her collection “Dissension” spills powerful virtue through smartly selected words. For example we can consider a simple poem like “Born to live and love”, especially the following lines-

“The voices

Bold as they are

Prompts actions

Shedding away

The bondage

Of the norms”.

A little crescent formed by those delicate lips speaks more than thousand incomplete words tumbling over them every day. “I smiled” reminded me of this through the following lines:

“I smiled

Even though it felt strange

To bridge all enmity

Or perhaps to bond all diversity”

My era is punctured with relationships without its foundation. They are like daring menaces that alter the ethics- washing away the societal ruins down the murky gutters, leaving me to ponder- are the Flower Children still thriving unsatisfied within us? May be Nayak had written the poem- “Can I secure a place?” for other purposes- but, I guess there is no harm in deciphering written lines in new light. Quoting from it.

“Answers pose more questions

Than convictions

I reckon

It is my illusion

Making love

Seems like struggle

For survival

Or is it?”

Conformists don’t have a way but to bend the approaching claws of new decadent waves. Will these fluorescent trends, reflecting the colours of rainbow, go down in history like the much talked about Wildes?

The poem –“Save the last dance for me / My love!” seems like an answer to Michael Bubbles’s favourite song- “Save the last dance for me”- or more profound answer on behalf of women who felt their voices gagged and their innocence trampled in the dark unfortunate alleys of our civilization. To all those who love organizing stampedes over urges of being liberated- I would join in with Nayak and speak the very lines, she has etched out through her revolting pen-

“I would rise from the ashes

A phoenix incarnate

Save the last dance for me

My love!

About the Author:

Born and brought up in Bhubaneswar, Orissa, Gopa set up a home and raised her two sons in Hong Kong and Singapore. She then moved to Oxford to pursue her Masters leading to a DPhil from Oxford University. It was during her stay in Oxford that her words found meaning in poetry.

Further Information:

Book Review: Dreams of Distance

2012-01-29T12:37:00.000+05:30

Author: Bhabani Shankar Nayak

Format: Paperback

Language: English

Pages: 129

Price: Rs. 200

Publishers: Cyberwit.net

ISBN Number: 978-8182532489

About the book:

I remember how a teacher had once, out of exasperation, blurted out, “Alas how strange it is that anyone who gets to drink a portion of literature from the residuals left behind but recent predecessors, tries to scribble a poem! O god! Why do we forget that Nobel laureates are not born so often?” I was young back then, thus did not dare to reply. Though, now, perhaps I am able to chant in whispers-

“These are not just words

In wild thoughts

A poet writes to express

In different ways

To share the secrets

With his loved ones…”

The above lines are quoted from the poem called “Dream of a Poet”. You will find it in Bhabani Shankar Nayak’s “Dreams of distance”.

The most alluring destination in Orissa, for me, was the Sun temple at Konark. Honestly, was quite thrilled to find the poem titled by the same. Creativity reaches an upper notch, when you find how different can expression run through the channels of human thought and how a particular place hold on to the reins of wilderness and refresh every creative outburst and cast it with the trait of distinctive individuality. Quoting from it-

“Fragments of her thought

Draws love sick art

In whispering stones

Eyes stop and heart dotes...”

I also remember, while wandering amidst the temple remises- I had a strange urge to seek back into the area on a full moon night- and perhaps listen to sounds from the past...Nayak’s “Lonely Moon” echoed my nascent feelings.

“There is a soul

Looking for pearl

Behind the moon

It is loneliness that shines

To defeat the darkness.”

However you try to bind your thoughts in cages, it will surely find the peeking gaps in between and set itself free from your malicious clutches, by and by. The lines from “Waiting Time” spoke to me the above mentioned motto of a survivor’s instinctive urges.

“In the face of strong wind

Open fields are always lonely

Celebrating the spirit of sky

Freedom of flying thrills

In an age ghettoisation of thoughts”

The words rebel page after page, they fall for each other- rule the desires and escape through the transits of our daily humdrum- to a different Utopia- envisioned by the poet, from time to time. Like dewdrops they soothe the aching backs of grass blades, like a child willing to ask endless questions, they form verses meant for Eternity to ponder upon. Nayak in his collection- achieves this connection- rhyming even the ideas existing poles apart.

About the author:

Dr Bhabani Shankar Nayak is a political economist by profession and poet by imaginary accident. He is the author of the Anubhuti (experience); collection of poems in Oriya. His anthology of poems; Nomad and the Road was published by the Writers Workshop, Kolkata. He writes on different areas of political economy of development and capitalism.

Further Information:

ubiquitous

2012-01-28T20:53:00.000+05:30

Surreal truth
Veiled emotion
Whirling with
My smoky dancer.

To the wanderer's visitors

2012-01-25T11:46:00.004+05:30

hanging dreams
Lighting flying lanterns
calling upon
those merry winds
from lands beyond my blue sea

Tangled in your messy thoughts,
As you gingerly
balance,
the mocking dices of Fate,

I pray to ward off
the sight of your butchered path...
Beckoning your frightened horse
To walk over
my soothing, healing, placid
"a journey called..."

(I have been away for a while and will be away yet again-had to resolve some nose business-and the nosy affair still continues under my very nose-but my mind was lingering right here-just in the honour of my blog's "birth anniversary"- I could not help, but to write down the above poem...)

This Moment

2012-01-17T19:01:00.000+05:30

No treason hidden
No sly play of mind.
Winding myself around you,
To say,
"For this moment,
You are Mine."

Book Review: Cobwebs in Space

2012-01-13T21:02:00.000+05:30

Author: Bushra Naqi

Format: Paperback

Language: English

Pages: 82

Price: Rs. 200

Publishers: Cyberwit.net

ISBN Number: 978-81-8253-222-9

About the book:

For a change, it is a welcoming surprise to read poems of someone living right across our borders. Honestly sensibilities of our Indian peninsula can never touch the lands of differences. And even if they do, they are like those ancient invading tribes- who would depart in a short while.

Bushra Naqi’s “cobwebs in space” speak at length about symbolic connotations in relation to generic thoughts of freedom. Even after I close the book, the words of the poem “Freedom” echo within me.

“I exist for I am free. I survive for I am free.”

The most poignant ending in the entire collection is :-

“The womb of mother nature liberated me at birth.”

When a woman writes she can seldom overcome the urge to pen down poems for her own creed. The following lines are from the poem “Woman”-

“her clipped wings

Trap energy

Artfully sneaking

Into wanton crevices...

Her diluted naiveté

Endures captivity”.

Creativity has witnessed trends of all kinds. It has borne the traces of dotting poetry and has travelled down the centuries as “words from several mouths”- till prose became the form of expression. For a few years, it came to my knowledge that several experimental writers are trying to merge poetry and prose and thus giving birth to the third transitional group – “poetic prose”.

Naqi’s attempts of poetic prose earn instant applause my personal favourite would be “Oceans of Silence”-

“The words not yet uttered into speech/move between us, trembling like a leaf, /touching our shores like sound passing/through an empty cave.../Love needs no voice to express itself.”

Naqi touches all the realms – which we have to live along with. Some of them are like poisonous thorns and others are like soothing balms over our ganglia-like wounds. Her words grow into a strong provocative voice and even touch the higher chords of protest. Poems like “In The Name of Honour” and “Explosions” are most representative poems of the collection. They evoke the realisation of the pain and plight her country has to bear is the name of “civility”.

If we look at the following lines of the poem, “Explosions”, we can gauge the true intensity of the turmoil as captured by the poet:

“As the fire engulfs them from within and without/they know that whosoever lights a fire, /will see it burn, / like a poison in a body spreading /killing it slowly and unknowingly.”

The collection is rightfully called “cobwebs in space”, not only due to the poem by the same name getting its place within the pages of the book, perhaps , also due to the same sense of chained up complications spread across the expenses of free space. Yet the attempt of breaking away is forever present. The lines of the poem “when darkness falls...” is more close proving the underlying theory of the above discussion.

“the test of a human spirit

In its endurance cohabits

Moored in a vessel of hope

To stir again its human consciousnesses...”

If you happen to pick this prestigious Patrus Bokhari Prize winner’s “Cobwebs in Space”- don’t forget to flip through the pages and read the poem “Lahore”, - a city got versed. To me, Naqi is less a poet more an accomplished bard.

About the author:

I hail from the city of Lahore, which has been described by many as the “city of poets, love, longing, sin and splendor.” Having been born four years after the birth of my country, I have witnessed this historic city undergo myriad changes as my country has juggled between pseudo-democracy and dictatorship. It is from this constant state of metamorphosis that I seek my inspiration. My critics describe me as an unconventional poet and a non-conformist who prefers to break down myths rather than adhere to traditions. Living in a traditionally conservative society, I have become a reactionary, challenging a stagnant and static way of life.

Further Information:

Book Review: Poetry Manifesto

2012-01-04T21:03:00.001+05:30

Author: Vihang A Naik

Format: Paperback

Language: English

Pages: 119

Price: Rs.135. US$ : 3.75

Publishers: INDIALOG PUBLICATIONS PVT LTD.,NEW DELHI , INDIA.

ISBN Number: 81 - 8443 - 033 - 7; 9788184430332

About the Book:

Poetry becomes a form of art and gains the consent of abstract bewilderment once you are able to call up on your inner senses, pull up your environmental awareness and finally squeeze out just the adequate amount of aromatic essence out of it to the awe of the general audience. Poetry Manifesto (new & selected poems) by Vihang A. Naik is filled with such tendencies.

I made a couple of young men and women read his collection out of whim and I am eager to share one such overwhelming feedback. Apart from using the common terminologies associated with the age group, the young man said, “This speaks more than it seems, this is so like us, talking in monosyllables at parts, as if speaking of machines, as if we are the living machines. Are we going to be “this” mechanised; when I grow older, to say about a decade later?”

My favourite section in the book is “A poet”. Like Polaroid instant snapshots the poet Vihang A. Naik is able to capture moments as seen in poems like “In Rains”-

“A girl folds her

Newspaper into a boat

And makes it flow

Over flooded waters.

A poem sails

above road level

with yesterday’s flood report.”

The ever lingering thought about “what made some of us select verse as our personal medium of literary expression?” is well dealt with in the poem “Making of a Poet”. Few lines like the following seems to have the intensity to engage in a debating affair- that would perhaps go on- like a man sitting in conversation with Dead- just to buy some more time for himself.

“did you instruct your hand to move

or make a poem?

Then you may even wonder how poetry

Makes a poet?”

I felt like being lost in an old snow clad town with wax idols of men and women scattered around. As if I was the only moving object with the only beating heart within and a colourful dress that determined my appearance- running about hunting for more colours. Here perhaps colours come in unison with the imageries associated with a butterfly. Here again the name is just as common- “A poet”

“in metropolis

A poet

Hunting

A butterfly

Ends up

With a pen

A blotted

Image

A poem”

If I am not speaking about “self portrait” then I am seriously undermining the developing idea of getting an image personified into the lines/words. The poem talks about the recognition of the “I” that finally “wake up” and makes the dominant effort “to see” the inner power hidden in “my-Self”. The discovery is kept hidden in between the lines so much so that you end up ignoring the blank in between the two pages. The last line marks the foot of the second page and ends without any punctuation- “discovered beyond thought”.

Poetry Manifesto (new & selected poems) by Vihang A. Naik is experimental arousing several untapped dimensions in the readers’ mind, giving them the perfect excuse to invade those lands that lay beyond the regular mesh of monotony.

About the author:

Vihang Ashokkumar Naik (born 1969), is an Indian poet writing in English and translates poetry from Gujarati into English.

Vihang A Naik was born in Surat, South Gujarat on September 2, 1969. He did his BA in English and Philosophy in the year 1993 and did an MA in English Literature and Indian Literature in translation in the year 1995, all from the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. He received his primary education during 1983 from Navrachana School , Vadodara. Gujarat. India.

He is India’s contemporary poet writing in English. His poems have appeared in such literary journals as The Indian P.E.N, Indian Literature : A Sahitya Akademi Bi-Monthly Journal, Kavya Bharati, POESIS: A Journal of Poetry Circle, Mumbai, The Journal of The Poetry Society (India), The Journal of Indian Writing In English, The Journal of Literature and Aesthetics, The Poetry Chain among other significant journals.

Four collections of his poetry have been published: Poetry Manifesto: New & Selected Poems (2010), Making A Poem (2004), City Times and Other Poems (1993). His Gujarati collection of poems include Jeevangeet (Gujarati Poems) published by Navbharat Sahitya Mandir (Ahmedabad) in 2001, dedicated to the cause of victims of Gujarat Earthquake of January 26, 2001. He also translates poetry written in the Gujarati language into English, including his own Gujarati language poems.

After teaching at Smt. M.C. Desai Arts and Commerce College , Prantij during 1996-97 while commuting from Ahmedabad , he is now an Associate Professor of English at Shree Ambaji Arts College ( Ambaji ) affiliated to Hemchandrachariya North Gujarat University , Patan., since 1797. He has his personlized website at http://vihang.naik.name

Further information:

Website: www.vihang.naik.name

opreoyoh

2012-01-04T15:37:00.000+05:30

Too sweet,
That's the coating
The inside is still
like a glowing red
Iron rod.

Looking at life from outside
It's a circus
With the cloth clad monkey
swinging along the periphery.

difficult is easy

2012-01-03T10:24:00.000+05:30

standing outside
the room
called trouble
finding a way
to help the old girl
find a way out---
ranking and chanting
trying to say
difficult is easy.

another year

2011-12-30T11:16:00.000+05:30

Here goes another year,

Waiting for pink flowers,

here goes another year,

waiting for a small greeting,

here goes another year,

waiting to be bathed in your smile.

here goes another year,

seating at my doorpost.

here goes another year,

dreaming of the unreal.

here goes another year

watching children making new year festoons.

here goes another year.

waiting to hear you whisper- "oh! dear."

Looking crossroads

2011-12-29T23:15:00.001+05:30

You never said yes,
You never said no,
You just made it clear
You are not there anymore.

Book Review: Prey by Ganges

2011-12-29T22:52:00.001+05:30

Author: Hemant Kumar

Format: paperback

Language: English

Pages: 387

Price: Rs 295

Publishers: Wisdom Tree, 2011

ISBN Number: 9788183281867

About the book:

Back Cover Blurb

1948.

A cold, rainy night in a forest across the Ganges, deep in the heart of eastern India.

An unarmed man with anger in his heart and a fortune on his person.

A handsome Thakur with evil on his mind and blood on his hands.

Both chasing a rare diamond, but for completely different reasons.

As the chase draws to a nerve-wracking climax, the night, too, is ticking down to a bloody end.

There are the others too—the Thakur’s beautiful wife, the sleazy psychopath, the angry muscleman, the corrupt dairy manager’s stunning daughter and the aging ranch hand with angry welts across his body and soul.

Each is a pawn in this bizarre game of life and death, and each with a story to tell. Or hide.

Will there be a sunrise for Shambhu? Or will he die like his friend, whose brutal murder triggered his perilous journey?

Find out…

Talking to Hemant, the writer (quite elder to me) was a pleasant experience. But I had my fingers crossed when I received the parcel, "what will be inside- oh! A book of course- but what’s going to come along with it...will it be that kick below the line- that would make me believe –“You can’t ask for praising your work, you simply earn it through well planned dedicated effort.”

Quoting a few lines from the novel- not because I am a Bengali by birth- but because in spite of lacking a sweet tooth, my mind got sweetened as I read these lines-

“A well- crafted rasgulla is like a beautiful woman- translucent skin, fine texture, mouth watering appeal, lingering aftertaste.”

I would like to mention- the novel is not so sweet to taste- it is rather a heart crutching experience- though a good one.

I confess - that was the wordplay I was looking forward to for a long time. Simplicity never requires to be verbose- if you pick the right word and spread the colorful letters to make a marvelous descriptive, you achieve the feat of a legendary artist. The idea is to make the story gripping- then the idea has to be to make it trilling per say. Hemant Kumar’s “Prey by the Ganges” achieves the feat- for it reminds me of the cultural equality of ancient times, reminds me -"so what now the places are named as Bihar, Jharkhand, Assam, Bengali, Sikkim or Orissa, once upon a time- these were linked." They do even now- they share the aura of togetherness- through their customs, their language and even their livelihood.

You can’t draw Santaram here but for those who ventured into reading the translated works of several Bengali authors of the golden era- would recall the thakur clashes reverberating through novels like Gora, Devi Choudhurani, or even parts of Palli Samaj. I haven’t read much of the novels from Orissa, Assam and Bihar- thus, my paucity of knowledge limits me from mentioning other textual references. You could even get glimpses of Aronnok and touches of Ray films getting mingled as Kumar, etches out his powerful characters bone by bone. Ironically the story begins with a ghastly murder- a man beaten to dead – literally clubbed down- was that a form of merciless killing performed by tribes around the world?

Often a death issues the flow of a novel and in the Prey by The Ganges- we have a painter falling for the temptation of a rare diamond, eventually getting killed and setting his childhood friend on a quest of revengeful intensions to the very heart of turmoil. A psychopath for a landlord is a dangerous villain; a belle who can draw sensual appeal is a Hellenic recreation of history itself – the earthiness within village politics, the inculcated conspiracy- the clans at loggerhead- story is like a chess board battle coming alive in front of my eyes.

If war requires proper addressing- before you think of the great battles fought and won, lost and remembered through epics and oral legends- this fiction will demand your attention and make you forget that its around 400 pages journey through the trails of a medicine man seeking justice.

About the author:

Growing up in Bihar through the troubled sixties and seventies, Hemant has witnessed turmoil from such close quarters, that he says he has looked into the bowels of the monster called violence. But in the same turmoil, he says he has come across character of extraordinary solidity – in men and women of ordinary means. Hemant says Prey By The Ganges has cooked in his mind for as long as he can remember.

Further Information:

Website URL

www.preybytheganges.com

Facebook Page

facebook.com/hemantkumaar

Fb page: Prey-By-The-Ganges

Twitter Handle

@preybytheganges

Book Review: Gestures: miscalculated poetries by misunderstood Poets

2011-12-29T13:21:00.001+05:30

Author: Yaseen Anwer, Heena Ansari, Nikhil Sharma, Rinzu Rajan & Swati Sevlani

Format: Paperback

Language: English

Pages: 89

Price: Rs. 200

Publishers: Cyberwit.net

ISBN Number: 978-81-8253-251-9

about the book:

Today’s random poetry is penned down by youngsters who find verse either rhythmic or free- an affordable medium to express their mind. Presently I am speaking about Yaseen Anwer, Heena Ansari, Nikhil Sharma, Rinzu Rajan and Swati Sevalani.

Gestures- miscalculated poetries by misunderstood poets, is the team’s collaborate venture that was an extension of Poet’s corner.

“Poet’s corner is the brain child of a group of young dynamic wordsmiths conquered by the quill. Their aim is to master the art and to take it to a level of grave those appeals to both the laymen and poets in likelihood.”

- Quoted from the book.

Yassen Anwer makes it clear enough- ‘I was not a poet/ and never expected to be/My pain forced me to write/and text became poetry.”

If we are to consider Yaseen’s “Victims” – we can feel the words pinching at our skeleton, itself-

“When victims seek sympathy

Crying,

Bleeding,

Struggling…

The echo not only travels length and breadth

Drilling,

Drifting

Struggling…

It reaches to the core and approaches the zenith.”

Heena Ansari- for whom a fading bond is still alive in her words-

“but believe me/swear, always/I feel you around me, like air.”

And Swati Sevlani- who communicates through nascent expressions getting the chance to know about the existence of the day.

To quote “I surpassed”-

“She was lost, she was puzzled…

The mingles and jingles gone somewhere,

She opened the door, embraced the nature,

All she had is to whisper.”

“Gravity is the tide

On which we levitate

Buoyed to the ebb and flow,

Of exaltation and tribulation.”

Nikhil Sharma, on the other hand, seemed to have grasped the potency hidden beneath the composure of stillness. Thus he writes in the poem “Walls”-

“of exasperation in dogma,

Or imposed vicariousness,

What’s left of this vagrant soul,

Day of final calling, and eternal sleep,

A eulogy, and some tears,

But me,

Alone…”.

To this band of daring writers in verse I would just say-

“I am thirsty

I am hungry

To read more and more.”

Note:

The poets participating in this collection have been mentioned in a recent poetry session organized by Dum Dum Motijeel College. May the flames of their poetic hunger be kept burning for decades to come.

about the authors:

Yaseen Anwer

Yaseen Anwer has done his schooling from New Delhi (Dr.Radhakrishnan International School and Jamia Senior Secondary School) and at present he is doing his engineering from Bangalore (Dayananda Sagar Institute of Technology).

Heena Ansari

Sprinkling laughter and joy around, Heena Kausher Ansari, is a free spirited soul aiming to put a smile on this world's face. A self styled people's person, Heena, is a firm believer of the old adage that talking resolves any issue.

Nikhil Sharma

Nikhil Sharma was born in Gujarat in the year 1984. His father worked with J&K bank. He did his initial schooling from Mumbai and then the family permanently settled in Jammu.

Rinzu Rajan

She started writing in early 2007 after a few personal debacles, and since then has been writing poetry and short stories. Although she has no formal training in creative writing she managed to break the ice by attending workshops and events to sharpen her skills. Since then she hasn’t looked back and the ink has flowed off her pen in concourse.

Swati Sevlani

Swati Sevlani, love to call as Swati Shobha Sevlani, is touching the thin lines of journalism. Working as freelancer writer and practicing editing skills in renowned English newspaper.

further details:

http://www.cyberwit.net/publications/316

Book Review: A Bridge over the Impossible

2011-12-29T11:55:00.000+05:30

Author: Dilip Gude

Format: Paperback

Language: English

Pages: 56

Price: Rs. 250

Publishers: Cyberwit.net

ISBN Number: 978-81-8253-261-8

About the book:

A writer who is able to divide his work among

1) Inspiration

2) Emotion

3) Responsibility

4) Inquisition

And finally draws the line with poetic references to the theme of “exemplary” needs to be regarded with reverence. Not so because, Dilip Gude, in his book “A bridge over the impossible” has been able to crave out his thoughts with utmost care and has shown immense understanding of the situations he has by far felt and lived through.

Gude negates the popular story of falling into the steady steps of the tortoise. In his poem “Inspiration” he makes the chivalric attempt of stating-

“2. Be the rabbit even if you lose.”

The poem has strong undertones capable of giving the readers the boiling zeal to make his dreams come true.

“ 1. Amass your strength, bid your skills

Inculcate haste and gobble energy’s spills

Summon your resources and imbibe each.”

If we are to follow the idea of “when there is a will there is a way”- I presume the following lines would surely find their way in an enthusiastic orator’s discourse-

“Heighten your senses,

Brighten yourself to stand apart

From the census, Break all ground,

make the path. Lead the lost and

found, shower on them success’s wrath.”

If the section of Inspiration was bathed with fiery words, "Emotion" opens the floodgates of a wounded mind. Or else it would have never began with the words-

“Hurt is just a chemical altercation in brain
Detach from it like dry lotus leaf in rain.”

The move we yell for our rights, the more we chant slogans in order to taste the elixir of freedom, the closure we creep towards our doomed graves. Rightfully expressed, by Gude in his poem “Responsibility”-

“2. You don’t own your life,
people around you do.

Your freedom is limited to freeing

Them from slack’s clutches’’ crew.”

Yet what touched this beating heart were the lines mentioned under the section dedicated to “Inquisition”-
“3. Imagination is the greatest

Architect o reality’s future.

Illumination of a dream

Underlies every invention’s facture.”

“A bridge over the impossible” has the feel of semi philosophical sermons placed in verses for the weakened hearts to find their way out of the tunnel of disillusionment. The book thus justify its serialized presentable, i.e. every poem is chronically numbered and gets grouped under a major theme- instead of carrying gaudy titles for themselves. The title thus stands true to its position- show the way to cross over hurdles in all spheres of human existence.

About the author:

Dr. Dilip Gude is a medical doctor practicing in Internal medicine at Medwin Hospital, Hyderabad, India. He has published over 70 articles in various national and international medical journals. Apart from his clinical practice he is an art aficionado and has unencumbered passion to poetry, screen-writing, photography, painting, dance and art in literally every form.

Further Information:

Book Review: Love's Journey

2011-12-27T16:33:00.000+05:30

Author: Rashmi Singh

Format:Paperback

Language: English

Pages: 224

Price: 150

Publishers: Pustak Mahal

ISBN Number: 8122312012 ISBN-13: 9788122312010 , 978-8122312010

About The Book:

Several of the Sidney Sheldon’s books keep mentioning of the same thing- the woman being exploited in her quest for love and in turn she learns how to manipulate the probable baits to achieve her means. The name of the lead character Jennifer Sebastian reminds me of woman depicted in novels and on the big screen-she is nevertheless a mixture of all of them- adorned with skin deep beauty and acts as pawn in the cosmic chess board of the glittering stage life. Is it true- to achieve the taste of the icing on the pinnacle of success you need to sell every bit of your flesh- Jennifer’s voice perhaps demands the answer as revealed from in between the pages of Rashmi Singh’s Love’s Journey.

Our commercial Bollywood life keeps getting documented in one way or the other. Some of us dare to reveal what lies beneath the cover, some follow the trend of Shashi Tharoor’s “Show business”, and some speak of the underbelly rumblings behind every stage show seen through a murky bioscope. Trails of a girl’s life and the tragedies that make her mouth endless slangs are never born on a single day. Jennifer’s unforgiving fate constantly drives her from one post to the other. And even the zenith ends up being bitter sweet. Convincing in parts, there still lingers an unnecessary stress of helplessness on characters at times. Perhaps the setting itself would make out as a lead character- the Bollywood world so as to say- pulling the threads and throwing sadistic smile each time it finds the protagonist cornered.

The only philosophic link would be recalling God as the savior, yet it is the same God who pens down destinies in his log book. Greed triumphs over hunger, hunger getting segregated into physical need, and getting tossed among potential male interests like Deepak , Shantanu Arora Jay Kumar and even Shambhu Vasan. I felt I was getting to see images of all those known faces from the posters – just that each one of them were carrying the pseudonym of Jennifer.

Rashmi Singh has this unique ability to keep poking at the closed walls of the human mind- commonly guarded by the word called “civility”. Her pattern of narration is perhaps directed at throwing thought provoking queries about “where is that thin line between the utopian belief and the murky existence?” She succeeds at jostling me with her wordplay-the rest remains at the hands of the readers’ to judge.

About The author:

Rashmi Singh is a freelance Personality Development Trainer and Counsellor based at Faridabad, near Delhi. An alumnus of Notre Dame Academy Patna, Loreto Convent, Ranchi and Avila Convent, Patna (P.W.C.), Rashmi did her C.T.E., M.A. and M.B.A post marriage. An extremely sincere worker, she has watched life from a very close proximity sieving positivity from the heaps of piled negativity around her. An active blogger, her posts appear in the Asia Section of an International Website, news.net by the names of Riviera and Lost Tranquility. Rashmi s debut novel Love s Journey published by Pustak Mahal is already a raging success, and highly appreciated...

Further Details:

FB Contacts: Loves-Journey, Rashmii.S

2 blogs in http://www.news.net in the Asia Section of it by the names of Riviera and Lost Tranquility.

Book Review: Unusual People Do Things Differently

2011-12-27T00:02:00.001+05:30

Author: TGC Prasad

Format: Paperback

Language: English

Pages: 312

Price: 399

Publishers: Penguin Books india

ISBN Number: 9780143416753

About the book:

Knock Knock Knock—oops you forget! Every stone on the road of life has something to teach-open your mind, eyes, ears and learn up what it has to preach. Management, management and management- argh! The world has forgotten all about it, I can understand it just by the look of the stressed up people wearing the obnoxious tag called “work is pending” around me. “We got no fresh plans, no fresh ideas and hola! We drink fresh fruit juice from a month old sealed tetra pack. TGC Prasad’s Unusual People Do Things Differently- is remarkably different- for me at least. Not quite fond of books with case studies, my college day reference books were no less pain the neck- the temptation of 65 people giving you ways and ideas to think out of the box- got this fawn trapped.

The book speaks of triumphs and failures- giving us a peep into the lives of people whom we might have heard of and even marveled about. Segregated into six major themes, the experiences are non linear to the mushy tales of chicken soup series. The whole concept in one way or the other is quite similar to the pattern followed by “THE BOSS IS NOT YOUR FRIEND” by VIJAY NAIR.

TGC Prasad talks of CEOs, common man and the people living in the fringes of the society- gathered together between the covers- and strikingly enough is able to maintain a balance between giving away facts and cutting the monotony by providing a conversational attribute to every piece. He draw the final stroke with a moralistic touch, either expressing what he has personally perceived from the incident or what the readers can imbibe and get motivated from.

Unusual People Do Things Differently will help a reader to understand the ways of becoming creative and derive solutions by making use of what he has learnt and has experienced either all by himself or through constant observations made, being set in niche. It speaks of putting in your passion at work and how never to give up. From a widow to a quizzing enthusiast, from an entrepreneur to a regular guy- the idea plays the same- it’s not exactly a fiction though the style could have given you away. Well, let’s call it nonfiction that borders the concept of self help books, carries the essence of referential case studies, punched with veiled fable like conclusion- yet achieving its ultimate goal of winning a place in the reader’s mind.

About the author:

TGC Prasad is currently on advisory boards of several companies. He is the author of the best selling books, “Unusual People Do Things Differently” (Portfolio, Penguin) and "Along the Way" (Rupa, Fiction). He is a motivational speaker, offers Strategy, General Management and HR advisory consulting. He has worked as Country Manager, Global Vice President for Misys Plc and was on the board of Misys, India. Prior to that he worked with companies such as Wipro, Coopers & Lybrand, PWC, IBM, MindTree, and Alcatel-Lucent in various senior management roles globally.

Further Details:

linkedin: tgcprasad

tgcblogs.wordpress.com

http://www.facebook.com/UnusualPeople

looking glass

2011-12-20T21:26:00.001+05:30

Psychedelic patterns,

Past and present

Losing themselves

In the graves of future.

Book Review: O Tirupati!

2011-12-20T14:22:00.003+05:30

Author: Anil Rao & Padmaja

Format: Paperback

Language: English, telegu

Pages: 93

Price: Rs. 300

Publishers: Cyberwit.net

ISBN Number: 978-8182532212

About the book:

“Tirupati is the town at the base of the Eastern Ghat Range known colloquially as The Seven Hills. Tirumala is the small temple town on the seventh hill of this range and is sometimes referred to as Eguava Tirupati (with the main town below referred to as Diguva Tirupati ). The residing deity, Sri Venkateswara or Balaji (as per the legend) manifested Himself in Tirumala and is enshrined in the hearts of literally millions of devotees spread across all corners of the globe, primarily within the South Indian diaspora.”
- as described in the publisher’s website

When travelers take the initiative to pen down a more friendly book than those less expensive guide books we find tucked inside the cornersof rusty book stores germinating off the by lanes of tourist spots- we happen to rely on them. I haven’t visited Tirupati yet. But O Tirupati- A Pilgrim’s Companion by Anil C. S. Rao and Padmaja Attota Rao makes me promise myself at least one thing-“ when you have finally made the decision to visit the place once in your life time- make sure you have this book tucked inside your backpack, wanderer.”

The book is well constructed with contents divided into:

The basic historical background
The broad architectural features,
The architectural features of the Vimana Pradakshinam
The description of Lord Venkateswara’s Temple at Tirumala.
History of the temple and the associated Dynasties
Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatam.

There is a second part coming along- that portrays the legend associated with the temple and the residing deity.

I am note quite a travelogue critic, thus I would not venture into in finer aspects. My association with historical places in terms of books written on it is sparse and I have only read about architectural building in my school days. Years have passed since then. The documented notes, subheads, aspects on constructional importance, would have never attracted me for two reasons back then- one they were never written to influence us into understanding the actual aura of the place concerned and secondly, they were accompanied with least attractive images. “O Tirupati” is better off. The writers’ personal collections of images come out as a standing proof to the cosmic ambiance attached to the place- the hand drawn sketches that come along with the story of the deity is indeed an added benefit. Had there been just the two pages brief summary of the legend, the book would fail to entice readers. Especially if you trying to draw the attention of the younger members of your traveling group, instead of just telling them about what lies inside the house of God, it is better to narrate a story that makes them live the past even in the present time for a few moments. Discovering the uniqueness of a place lies in the drastic differences between individual perceptions. The more a writer is able to evoke that urge to perceive with vigor- the better his works are remembered.

Apart from being published in English, O Tirupati! also has a Telegu edition.

About the authors:

Anil CS Rao is an artist and writer presently based in Andhra Pradesh in South India. He has lived in the West from the age of 4 prior to obtaining “dual citizenship” and relocating to his Mother Land in 2010. His mixed media / photoshop artwork has been exhibited in galleries in the States, Europe and in India.
His wife, Padmaja is a painter and together they explore synergies with respect to their combined talents - a.k.a. “Padnil Arts” in the creation of publications and computer animated films.

Further details:

FB Connect- Anil C Rao
Where to buy- cyberwit.net/O Tirupati!